my cat curtis ran away a few weeks before 9/11. it was just a few days before i took my first trip to washington state too. i'd called a few times from washington to see if curtis had come back, but he didn't and never did. i missed him for a long time. i dunno how long exactly, but it's definitely hard to lose an animal. i'd had him since i was about 16, was 23 when he ran away... or almost 23 anyway. i'm glad moo is an indoor cat. hopefully i'll have her for a long time. moo actually did get lose over the summer. it was my fault. i don't really like to talk about it, but my sister found her and she's home now.